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Visa Changers Prefer Kish to Oman

AL AIN - The number of visa changers stranded on the UAE-Oman border has dwindled, and those who are still there have found out that their travel agencies in the UAE have already closed down when they tried making follow-up calls.

Visa changers now prefer to go to Kish Island in Iran as their charges for overstaying are just Dh80 per day compared to that in Oman where it is Dh100 for a day for overstaying after a week’s extension.

Aminah Marbuey, coordinator of the Philippine Embassy on the UAE-Oman border, told Khaleej Times on Sunday that over 2,000 Filipinos are stranded on the Oman border now, a thousand less than in August-October last year.

Other than Filipinos, many Arabs, African-Arabs, Indians and Pakistanis are also stranded. “Ten to 12 people occupied a hotel room earlier. This time when I went to check, only eight guests shared a hotel room,” she added.

Janice Parco, who was stranded in Al Buraimi sometime in October and returned to the UAE on one month’s tourist visa, said she went to Kish, instead of the Omani border, for visa change on the expiry of her visa this month. “At least, the Iranian government allows us to extend our stay in Kish if we are stranded for months. In Oman, we could extend the visa for a week after which we had to pay Dh100 daily for overstaying. The last time I was there, I had to pay over Dh3,000 for overstaying before I finally got my new UAE tourist visa,” she said.

The hotels too cost less than in Oman. “A night in Al Buraimi costs me Dh60. In Kish, I could stay at a hotel charging as low as Dh35 a day with free breakfast.”

Aminah Marbuey also said the situation on the border is a lot better than before as many have gone back to the UAE with new tourist visas. “Before, three buses full of visa changers from the UAE arrived in Al Buraimi daily. This time, even during the holidays in December, only a busload of visa changers came daily. The number has come down because of the difficulty in extending their stay in Oman just in case their new UAE tourist visas don’t come in time.

“Oman only grants one week’s extension, and if they don’t leave, they have to pay the fine as they become illegals.”

Aminah also said that many visa changers are getting wiser. “Many Filipinos, for instance, are sharing flats of expatriate residents on the border, and stay longer with less expenses.

“They are also free from harassment from the hotel management, who threaten to call the police if the hotel bills are not paid,” she said.

However, some of those still stranded on the Omani border are struggling to locate their travel agents in the UAE.

Jo Dimitui, a Filipino living in Dubai, told KT that his friends, who have been stranded in Al Buraimi for 52 days, called him to follow up their visa procedures. “They requested me to go to their agency as no one picked up the phone when they rang its office. When I went there, it was already closed down.”

Earlier, the Naturalisation and Residency Department (NRD) in Abu Dhabi had told KT that it imposed penalties on travel agencies for violating visa rules, allowing people to enter or stay in the country illegally.

The announcement did not mention any closure of the agencies but stated that the penalties ranged from warning letters to the suspension of the agencies’ transactions with the department for one year.

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